In 1907, the poet and novelist Rainer Maria Rilke travelled to France and visited the Salon d’Automne, an annual art exhibition in Paris, where he saw the work of Cézanne, a year after the death of the artist. Rilke wrote a series of letters to his wife, the sculptor Clara Westhoff, reflecting on the paintings of...
Continue readingClouds are mysterious and ephemeral aerosols, each one a visible mass of condensed watery vapour. It was the amateur British meteorologist, Luke Howard, who created the name clouds that became universally adopted, so becoming known as the father of meteorology. His curiosity was born from daily musings on the different shapes of clouds he...
Continue readingWe wish you a Merry Christmas and the happiest of New Years! ? From everyone on the Blue & White Company Team ? We will be back on Wednesday 3rd January 2019
Continue readingFor centuries blue and gold have been married together in art. It is difficult to ascertain why artists choose certain colours for their compositions, we can only infer their reasons. Examples of these two colours being used together can be traced back to the Byzantine period, which spanned several centuries between c.330-1453. Artworks in this...
Continue readingIn the mid sixteenth century the Eighty Years War took place, which had a big impact on art making and buying. When the citizens of the Netherlands revolted against Spanish rule under King Philip of Spain, taking back their independence, the result was the dissolution of the powerful Royal court. Protestantism became the dominant religion,...
Continue readingMaria Sibylla Merian was born in 1647 in Frankfurt, Germany. Her father Matthäus Merian (the Elder) was a well known engraver and publisher, who ran a flourishing publishing shop in Frankfurt. He died when Maria was three, but the shop continued to be run by other family members. There was a great deal of work going...
Continue readingThis year marks the 500th anniversary of Jacopo Tintoretto’s birth, an artist who is one of Venice’s most prolific painters. Save Venice has funded the restoration of many paintings by the cherished Tintoretto, who has more than seven hundred paintings all over the city. This is an American and Venetian non-profit organisation, which over the decades been...
Continue readingMusic permeated life in seventeenth century Delft, as well as in other European countries. It was common practice for music to be performed, by women especially, but also by men, as a way of entertaining guests and others in the room. Music could be heard inside homes, outside by street performers and at special events...
Continue readingSince before the launch of the Blue & White Company, back in November 2017, we were keen to find a way to support emerging artists and creative conversations in a local capacity. As a small group of artists and makers ourselves, we appreciate how positive it can be to keep doors open to learning and...
Continue readingDenim is one of the most widely used fabrics in the world and denim jeans are the most popular indigo-dyed garment produced today – they have been for decades. Indigo dye is the dyestuff in denim that creates its distinctive deep blue colour. The word indigo originally comes from the Greek word ‘indikón’, later ‘indicum’...
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